SDF Fighters Withdraw from Aleppo After Ceasefire Deal Ends Deadly Clashes

Aleppo Governor Azzam al-Gharib told Al Jazeera early Sunday that Aleppo has become "empty of SDF fighters" after government forces coordinated their withdrawal overnight, with fighters leaving on buses out of the city.

SDF commander Mazloum Abdi, also known as Mazloum Kobani, said the group had reached an understanding through international mediation to halt hostilities and allow the safe evacuation of civilians and fighters.

"We have reached an understanding that leads to a ceasefire and securing the evacuation of the dead, the wounded, the stranded civilians and the fighters from the Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhoods to northern and eastern Syria," he said in a post on X.

He further said, "We call on the mediators to adhere to their promises to stop the violations and work towards a safe return for the displaced to their homes."

According to Al Jazeera, the withdrawal followed the Syrian army's takeover of the Kurdish-majority Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhood after days of clashes that began when negotiations to integrate the SDF into the national army collapsed.

At least 30 people were killed in the clashes, while more than 150,000 were displaced, the report said.

Al Jazeera reported that calm has returned to Aleppo after the ceasefire deal, adding that the United States played a key role in facilitating the agreement between the SDF and the Syrian government.

It quoted that "The US is in a unique position, because it enjoys good relations with the SDF and the government," noting that Washington has worked with the Kurdish-led force against ISIL (ISIS) for more than a decade.

The report further said that after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad's government in late 2024, Washington has also developed close ties with rebel commander-turned interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.

It added that the Syrian president met US President Donald Trump at the White House last year and has formally joined the US-led coalition against ISIL.

The fighting erupted on Tuesday in the predominantly Kurdish neighbourhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud, Ashrafieh and Bani Zaid amid tensions linked to the failure to implement a March 2025 agreement aimed at reintegrating Kurdish forces into state institutions, according to Al Jazeera.

The deadline for that deal passed at the end of last year, after which the SDF refused to withdraw from areas it has controlled since the early stages of Syria's conflict, which began in 2011, the report said.

Al Jazeera said that while the immediate fighting has ended, "the fault line, the backdrop for this fighting, remains."

It further quoted, "There are many difficult issues in Syria, but the greatest threat to national stability and unity remains this question of whether the SDF join Damascus and be under Damascus's control."

The report noted that the SDF has a large force estimated at between 50,000 to 90,000 fighters, mainly stationed in the northeast, and controls almost a quarter of Syria's territory.

Al Jazeera also said the violence in Aleppo makes the prospect of SDF integration "look far less likely".

It further quoted, "There are also other sticking points, which might make the SDF refuse to put down their weapons."

It added, "The SDF don't want to cede control of the country's northeast, and they want to maintain a certain amount of autonomy in order to have the governance in northeastern Syria."

- ANI